The close of Board of Control for Cricket for India (BCCI) vice-president Rajeev Shukla's close aide, Akram Saifi, has been accused of cheating a Uttar Pradesh cricketer in the name of selecting him for the Indian Cricket Team.
The case has been registered against Akram Saifi and two others by Uttar Pradesh police for cheating and defrauding a UP cricketer for falsely promising him his selection into Team India. As per the report, the accused allegedly took the bride of INR 10 lakh on the pretext of the player's place in the India squad.
However, Uttar Pradesh player was threatened by one of the three accused when he demanded the refund of the money when he didn't fulfill his promise of the cricketer's selection for the national team.
The case against Akram Saifi and two others have been registered under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 406 (punishment for criminal breach of trust) and 506 (Punishment for criminal intimidation).
As per the First Investigation Report (FIR), Uttar Pradesh Cricket, Satya Pradesh Yadav alleged that he has performed well in trails of UP Cricket Association but couldn't selected for the state team. During this team, Satya met Anurag who said that he connection with Akram Saifi, who is the chief of Saharanpur Cricket Association.
According to the allegation by Gorakhpur cricketer, he paid 8 lakh in cash and 2.45 lakh online to Anurag. When asked for refund of the money after failing to get him into the Indian team, Anurag and Akram Saifi threatened to kill.
Who is Akram Saifi?
Akram Saifi is reported to be the close of aide of BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla. As per his Linkedin profile, it is mentioned that the accused that he is the 'Executive Assitant to IPL chairman.'
Saifi has played a vital role in bringing the talents from the Uttar Pradesh's district of Sahranpur to the state team. He was the only player from the to have represented UP in the domestic cricket. Since then, many players from the district began to play for the state team.
Akram Saifi was a member of Indian Premier League (IPL) governing council and a personal staff of then chairman Rajeev Shukla.
Akram accused in 'sex-for-selection' sting
Akram Saifi's first expose came to the light in 2018 after a Hindi news channel did a sting operation through a phone call between Rajeev Shukla's close aide and UP cricketer Rahul Sharma, wherein he was asking 'cash and kind' favour to ensure his place in Rahul's place in the state team.
The sting operation grabbed the headlines, resulting in strong reaction from Rajeev Shukla and former UP cricketers Mohammed Kaif and RP Singh, who demanded detailed investigation into the sting operation from BCCI.
Due to the sting operation, Saifi was forced to step down from the BCCI after he was suspended by the board for seeking bribes from the players in order to facilitate their selection into the Uttar Pradesh state team.
